Country music has remained an integral part of theAmerican music scene, with a recent revitalization in interest since the early 2020s.[4] In 2023, 45% of Americans reported listening to country music, an uptick in the genre's popularity.[11]
The main components of the modern country music style date back to music traditions throughout the Southern United States andSouthwestern United States, while its place inAmerican popular music was established in the 1920s during the early days of music recording.[12] According to country historianBill C. Malone, country music was "introduced to the world as a Southern phenomenon."[2]
Country music, still known ashillbilly music at the time, gained an increased audience with theinvention of the radio in the 1920s.[5] The largest country music radio show was theGrand Ole Opry, aired starting in 1925 byWSM inNashville and continuing to present day.[21]Okeh Records, a New York City record label began issuing hillbilly records in 1923, eventually followed byColumbia Records in 1924, andRCA Victor Records in 1927.[22] Outside of New York,Atlanta's country music scene was also important launching many early recording artist's career.[citation needed] Thesteel guitar entered country music as early as 1922, when Jimmie Tarlton met famed Hawaiian guitaristFrank Ferera on the West Coast.[23] Many hillbilly musicians recordedblues songs throughout the 1920s.[24][25]The first commercial recordings of what was considered instrumental music in the traditional country style were "Arkansas Traveler" and "Turkey in the Straw" by fiddlers Henry Gilliland &A.C. (Eck) Robertson on June 30, 1922, for Victor Records and released in April 1923.[26][27]
The first commercial recording of what is widely considered to be the first country song featuring vocals and lyrics wasFiddlin' John Carson with "Little Log Cabin in the Lane" forOkeh Records on June 14, 1923.[28][29]Vernon Dalhart was considered the first country singer to have a nationwide hit in May 1924 with "Wreck of the Old 97."[30] The flip side of the record was "Lonesome Road Blues", was also popularized.[31] In April 1924, "Aunt"Samantha Bumgarner and Eva Davis became the first female musicians to record and release country songs.[32] Many of the early country musicians, such as theyodelerCliff Carlisle, recorded blues songs into the 1930s.[33]James Gideon "Gid" Tanner, an American old-timefiddler, was one of country music's earliest stars. With his string band, theSkillet Lickers, in the 1920s and 1930s, many early country songs were written and performed.[34]
Jimmie Rodgers and theCarter Family are widely considered to be important early country musicians.[citation needed] FromScott County, Virginia, the Carters had learnedsight reading of hymnals and sheet music usingsolfege.[35] Their songs were first captured at ahistoric recording session inBristol, Tennessee, on August 1, 1927, whereRalph Peer was the talent scout and sound recordist.[36][37] A scene in the movieO Brother, Where Art Thou? depicts a similar occurrence in the same timeframe. Rodgers fused hillbilly country, gospel, jazz, blues, pop, cowboy, and folk, and many of his best songs were his compositions, including "Blue Yodel",[38] which sold over a million records and established Rodgers as the premier singer of early country music.[39][40] Beginning in 1927, and for the next 17 years, the Carters recorded some 300 old-time ballads, traditional tunes, country songs and gospel hymns, all representative of America's southeastern folklore and heritage.[41]
Record sales declined during theGreat Depression, but radio became a popular source of entertainment, and "barn dance" shows featuring country music were popularized, beginning in the Southern United States and spreading north to Chicago and west to California.[42] The most important was theGrand Ole Opry, aired starting in 1925 byWSM inNashville and continuing to the present day.[43] Some of the early stars on theOpry wereUncle Dave Macon,Roy Acuff and African American harmonica playerDeFord Bailey.
Drums were looked down on by early country musicians as being too loud and not pure for the country sound. By 1935,Bob Wills added drums to his western swing band,Texas Playboys, despite opposition by the country music venue, theGrand Ole Opry. In contrast,Louisiana Hayride, a less conservative country music venue, kept a house drummer backstage as late as 1956.[44] In the 1960s, however, it was rare for a country band not to have a drummer.[45]
Bob Wills was one of the first country musicians known to have added anelectric guitar to his band, in 1938. A decade later (1948)Arthur Smith recordedGuitar Boogie, which crossed over to the US pop charts, introducing many people to the potential of the electric guitar. For several decades Nashville session players preferred the warm tones of theGibson andGretsch archtop electrics, but a "hot"Fender style, using guitars which became available beginning in the early 1950s, eventually prevailed as the signature guitar sound of country.[45][46]In the 1930s and 1940s, cowboy songs, or western music, which had been recorded since the 1920s, were popularized by films made in Hollywood, with popularsinging cowboys such asGene Autry, known as king of the "singing cowboys," theSons of the Pioneers, andRoy Rogers.[47] Country music and western music were frequently played together on the same radio stations, hence the termcountry and western music, despite country and western being two distinct genres. Cowgirls contributed to the sound in various family groups, withPatsy Montana opening the door for female artists with "I Want To Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart".Bob Wills developed the subgenrewestern swing, bringing in more instruments and players.[48] At its height, western swing rivaled the popularity ofbig band swing music. Country musicians began recordingboogie in 1939, shortly after it had been played atCarnegie Hall, whenJohnny Barfield recorded "Boogie Woogie".[49] The trickle of what was initially called hillbilly boogie, or okie boogie, became a flood beginning in late 1945, with notable releases likethe Delmore Brothers'Freight Train Boogie, part of the evolution towardrockabilly.[50] The hillbilly boogie period lasted into the 1950s and remains one of many subgenres of country into the 21st century.[51] By the end ofWorld War II, "mountaineer" string band music known asbluegrass had emerged whenBill Monroe joined withLester Flatt andEarl Scruggs, introduced by Roy Acuff at the Grand Ole Opry.[52]Gospel music remained a popular component, withRed Foley having one of the first million-selling gospel hits ("Peace in the Valley") and also singing boogie, blues and rockabilly. In the post-war period, country music was called "folk" in the trades, and "hillbilly" within the industry.[53] In 1944,Billboard replaced the term "hillbilly" with "folk songs and blues," and switched to "country and western" in 1949.[54][55]
Another type of stripped-down and raw music with a variety of moods and a basic ensemble of guitar, bass,dobro or steel guitar (and later) drums became popular, especially among rural residents in the three states ofTexhomex, those beingTexas,Oklahoma, andNewMexico.[56] It became known ashonky tonk and had its roots in western swing and theranchera music of Mexico and the border states, particularly New Mexico and Texas,[57] together with the blues of the American South.Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys personified this music which has been described as:
"a little bit of this, and a little bit of that, a little bit of black and a little bit of white... just loud enough to keep you from thinking too much and to go right on ordering the whiskey."[58]
Thesehonky tonk songs were associated with bar rooms.[59] The music of these artists who began in this type would later be referred to astraditional country.Webb Pierce, a honky-tonk singer, was the top-charting country artist of the 1950s, with 13 of his singles spending 113 weeks at number one.
"After I left Nashville (the early 70s), I wanted to relax and play the music that I wanted to play, and just stay around Texas, maybe Oklahoma. Waylon and I had that outlaw image going, and when it caught on at colleges and we started selling records, we were O.K. The whole outlaw thing, it had nothing to do with the music, it was something that got written in an article, and the young people said, 'Well, that's pretty cool.' And started listening." -Willie Nelson[88]
During the mid-1970s,Dolly Parton, a successful mainstream country artist since the late 1960s, mounted a high-profile campaign to cross over to pop music, culminating in her 1977 hit "Here You Come Again", which topped the U.S. country singles chart, and also reached No. 3 on the pop singles charts. Parton's male counterpart,Kenny Rogers, came from the opposite direction, aiming his music at the country charts, after a successful career in pop, rock and folk music withthe First Edition. He achieved success withLucille, topping reaching No. 5 on the U.S. pop singles charts, and No. 1 on the British all-genre chart, as well as the country class,The Gambler.[91] In 1975, authorPaul Hemphill stated in theSaturday Evening Post,
"Country music isn't really country anymore; it is a hybrid of nearly every form of popular music in America."[92]
During the early 1980s, country artists continued to see their records perform well on the pop charts, despite some pushback from some more established artists in the industry.[93][94][95] Many artists moved to produce country pop, a sound that had more intensive production and received radio airtime, in favor of more traditional or acoustic productions.[96]Described byAllMusic as the "father of country-rock",[97]Gram Parsons' work in the early 1970s was acclaimed for its purity and for his appreciation for aspects of traditional country music.[98] Subsequent to the initial blending of the two polar opposite genres, other offspring soon resulted, includingSouthern rock,heartland rock and in more recent years,alternative country.[99] In 1980, a style of "neocountry disco music" was popularized by the filmUrban Cowboy.[100][101] It was during this time that a glut of pop-country crossover artists began appearing on the country charts.[102] Sales in record stores rocketed to $250 million in 1981; by 1984, 900 radio stations began programming country or neocountry pop full-time. As with most sudden trends, however, by 1984 sales had dropped below 1979 figures.[100] The music of the 1960s and 1970s targeted the American working class, andtruckers in particular. A fusion ofhonky-tonk,country rock and theBakersfield sound,[103] truck driving music has thetempo of country rock and the emotion of honky-tonk, and its lyrics focus on atruck driver's lifestyle.[104][103] As country radio became more popular, trucking songs like the 1963 hit songSix Days on the Road byDave Dudley rose in popularity.[105] The song was written by actual truckers and contained numerous references to the trucker culture of the time like "ICC" forInterstate Commerce Commission and "little white pills" as a reference toamphetamines.
During the mid-1980s, a group of new artists began to emerge who rejected the more polished country-pop sound that had been prominent on radio and the charts, in favor of more, traditional, "back-to-basics" production. The so called "Class of '81",Ricky Skaggs,George Strait, andReba McEntire, began a long string of hits that revisited a traditional sound.[106] Many of the artists during the latter half of the 1980s drew on traditional honky-tonk, bluegrass, folk and western swing.[107]
Country music was aided by the U.S.Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Docket 80–90, which led to a significant expansion ofFM radio in the 1980s by adding numerous higher-fidelity FM signals to rural and suburban areas. At this point, country music was mainly heard on ruralAM radio stations; the expansion of FM was particularly helpful to country music, which migrated to FM from the AM band as AM became overcome bytalk radio (the country music stations that stayed on AM developed theclassic country format for the AM audience).[citation needed] At the same time,beautiful music stations already in rural areas began abandoning the format (leading to its effective demise) to adopt country music as well. This wider availability of country music led to producers seeking to polish their product for a wider audience. In 1990,Billboard, which had published acountry music chart since the 1940s, changed the methodology it used to compile the chart: singles sales were removed from the methodology, and only airplay oncountry radio determined a song's place on the chart.[108]
In the 1990s, country music became a worldwide phenomenon thanks toGarth Brooks,[109][110][111] who enjoyed one of the most successful careers in popular music history, breaking records for both sales and concert attendance throughout the decade. He attracted fans with his fusion of neotraditionalist country andstadium rock.George Strait, whose career began in the 1980s, also continued to have widespread success in this decade and beyond.Toby Keith began his career as a more pop-oriented country singer in the 1990s, evolving into an outlaw persona in the early 2000s withPull My Chain and its follow-up,Unleashed.[112][113]
Female artists such asReba McEntire,Patty Loveless,Faith Hill,Martina McBride,Deana Carter,LeAnn Rimes,Mindy McCready,Pam Tillis,Lorrie Morgan,Shania Twain, andMary Chapin Carpenter all released platinum-selling albums in the 1990s. TheDixie Chicks became one of the most popular country bands in the 1990s and early 2000s. Their 1998 debut albumWide Open Spaces went on to become certified 12 times platinum while their 1999 albumFly went on to become 10 times platinum. Canadian artistShania Twain became the best selling female country artist of 1990s. Her 1997 album,Come On Over, became a worldwide phenomenon one of the world's best selling albums for three years (1998, 1999 and 2000). Twain has been credited with breaking international boundaries for country music, as well as inspiring many country artists to incorporate different genres into their music in order to attract a wider audience.
In the early-mid-1990s, country western music was influenced by the popularity ofline dancing. This influence was so great thatChet Atkins was quoted as saying, "The music has gotten pretty bad, I think. It's all that damn line dancing."[114] By the end of the decade, however, at least one line dance choreographer complained that good country line dance music was no longer being released. In contrast, artists such asDon Williams andGeorge Jones who had more or less had consistent chart success through the 1970s and 1980s suddenly had their fortunes fall rapidly around 1991 when the new chart rules took effect. Country influences combined withPunk rock andalternative rock to forge the "cowpunk" scene in Southern California during the 1980s, which included bands such asthe Long Ryders,Lone Justice andthe Beat Farmers, as well as the established punk groupX, whose music had begun to include country and rockabilly influences.[115] Simultaneously, a generation of diverse country artists outside of California emerged that rejected the perceived cultural and musical conservatism associated with Nashville's mainstream country musicians in favor of more countercultural outlaw country and the folk singer-songwriter traditions of artists such asWoody Guthrie,Gram Parsons andBob Dylan.[116] Earle, in particular, had both country andcollege rock audiences. In 1986, he opened for both country singerDwight Yoakam and alt-rock band,the Replacements.[117] Yoakam also cultivated a fanbase spanning multiple genres through his stripped-downhonky-tonk influenced sound and performances at Los Angelespunk rock clubs.[118] These early styles merged around 1990, whenUncle Tupelo released an influential debut albumNo Depression.[119] The album is widely credited as being the firstalt-country album, and inspired the name ofNo Depression magazine, which principally covered the new genre.[119][120]Darius Rucker, frontman for the 1990s pop-rock bandHootie & the Blowfish, began a country solo career in the late 2000s, one that to date has produced five albums and several hits on both the country charts and the Billboard Hot 100. Singer-songwriterUnknown Hinson became famous for his appearance in theCharlotte television showWild, Wild, South, after which Hinson started his own band and toured in southern states. Other rock stars who featured a country song on their albums wereDon Henley (who releasedCass County in 2015) andPoison.
In the mid to late 2010s, country andpop music fused more closely,[126] gaining in popularity with mainstream audiences.[127] The singers who are part of this country movement are also defined as "Nashville's new generation of country".[128][126][129] In a broadening of the rhetorical style and coverage of themes in country music, some of these artists have explored feminism, racism, and religion.[130] Some touched on more controversial issues, such as acceptance of theLGBT community, safe sex, recreational marijuana use, and questioning religious sentiment.[130][131] In 2024,Beyonce released a country album,Cowboy Carter, to popular acclaim, featuring original songs such asTexas Hold 'Em and a cover of Dolly Parton'sJolene.[132] The genre continues to evolve and attract new influences. The influence ofrock music in country has become more overt during the late 2000s and early 2010s.Hip hop also made its mark on country music with the emergence ofcountry rap.[133][134] In addition to the emergence of many fusion genres and the continual growth in the country pop sound and country subgenres crossed into rock, alternative and folk, the themes discussed in country music broadened. While many artists still discussed the traditional and conservative values of rural life, working class issues steered towards urban and service work, with acts such asDougie Poole.[135][136] Female acts in country music also grew rapidly, with a broadening of thematic topics, such as women's rights, being discussed by major stars, such asKacey Musgraves.[137]
The country rap sound was brought into the mainstream bysouthern rappers, with atrap style of production, and country music artists. Nelly and Tim McGraw's "Over and Over" debuted in 2004. In 2003,BubbaSparxxx's debut album, which was self-described as southern trap, was released. This style of music features rap lyrics over country instrumentation, as well as hip-hop production elements.Lil Nas X's song "Old Town Road"spent 19 weeks atop the USBillboard Hot 100 chart, becoming the longest-running number-one song since the chart debuted in 1958, winningBillboard Music Awards,MTV Video Music Awards and a Grammy Award.[138]Sam Hunt's "Leave the Night On" peaked concurrently on the Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts, making Hunt the first country artist in 22 years, sinceBilly Ray Cyrus, to reach the top of three country charts simultaneously in theNielsen SoundScan-era.[139] With the fusion genre of "countrytrap"—a fusion of country/western themes to ahip hop beat, but usually with fully sung lyrics—emerging in the late 2010s, line dancing country had a minor revival, examples of the phenomenon include "The Git Up" byBlanco Brown.[140] Blanco Brown has gone on to make more traditional country soul songs such as "I Need Love" and a rendition of "Don't Take the Girl" withTim McGraw, and collaborations like "Just the Way" withParmalee.[141] Another country trap artist known asBreland has seen success with "My Truck", "Throw It Back" withKeith Urban, and "Praise the Lord" featuringThomas Rhett.[142]Emo rap musicianSueco released acowpunk song in collaboration with country musicianWarren Zeiders titled "Ride It Hard".[143]
In the early 2010s, "bro-country", a genre noted primarily for its themes on drinking and partying, girls, and pickup trucks became particularly popular.[144][145][146] Artists associated with this genre areLuke Bryan,Jason Aldean,Blake Shelton,Jake Owen andFlorida Georgia Line whose song "Cruise" became the best-selling country song of all time.[147][148] Research in the mid-2010s suggested that about 45 percent of country's best-selling songs could be considered bro-country, with the top two artists being Luke Bryan and Florida Georgia Line.[149] Albums by bro-country singers also sold very well—in 2013, Luke Bryan'sCrash My Party was the third best-selling of all albums in the United States, with Florida Georgia Line'sHere's to the Good Times at sixth, and Blake Shelton'sBased on a True Story at ninth.[150] It is also thought that the popularity of bro-country helped country music to surpass classic rock as the most popular genre in the American country in 2012.[150] The genre however is controversial as it has been criticized by other country musicians and commentators over its themes and depiction of women,[151][152][153] opening up a divide between the older generation of country singers and the younger bro country singers that was described as "civil war" by musicians, critics, and journalists."[154] In 2014,Maddie & Tae's "Girl in a Country Song", addressing many of the controversial bro-country themes, peaked at number one on theBillboardCountry Airplay chart. In the latter part of the 2010s, an increasing number of mainstream country acts collaborated with pop, electronic, and R&B artists; many of these songs achieved commercial success. Examples include a collaboration betweenKane Brown andMarshmello[155] andMaren Morris andZedd, the latter of both duos being electronic music artists.[156]Maren Morris' successful collaboration "The Middle" withEDM producerZedd is considered to be one representation of the fusion of electro-pop with country music.[157] In the early 2020s, the uptick in country music's popularity has resulted in more songs in this genre reaching number one on theBillboard Hot 100, includingMorgan Wallen's "Last Night" andJason Aldean's "Try That in a Small Town".[158] Currently, Morgan Wallen is the traditional country artist with the mostBillboard Hot 100 chart toppers, with four.[159]
Tom Roland, fromCountry Music Association International, explains country music's global popularity:
"Country Music listeners around the globe have something in common with those in the United States. In Germany, for instance, Rohrbach identifies three general groups that gravitate to the genre: people intrigued with the US cowboy icon, middle-aged fans who seek an alternative to harder rock music and younger listeners drawn to the pop-influenced sound that underscores many current Country hits."[160]
One of the first US people to perform country music abroad wasGeorge Hamilton IV. He was the first country musician to perform in theSoviet Union.[citation needed] He was deemed the "International Ambassador of Country Music" for his contributions to theglobalization of country music.[161] Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Keith Urban, and Dwight Yoakam have also made numerous international tours.[160] TheCountry Music Association undertakes various initiatives to promote country music internationally.[160]
Bluegrass is a genre that contain songs about going through hard times, country loving, and telling stories. Its history can be traced back to the 1600s.[citation needed] During this time, many people were coming to America from Ireland, Scotland and England.[162]Bill Monroe, known as the father of bluegrass, was popularized much earlier than the fifth generation, although he served as an inspiration for newer artists.[163][164]
Americana music started to re-emerge in the mainstream, although the roots of the genre are traced to Hank Williams in the 1950s.[165] Americana music incorporates elements of country music, bluegrass, folk, blues, gospel, rhythm and blues, roots rock and southern soul. As a result of an increasingly pop-leaning mainstream, many more traditional-sounding artists such asTyler Childers,Zach Bryan andOld Crow Medicine Show began to associate themselves more with Americana and thealternative country scene where their sound was more celebrated.
Country music has risen in popularity in a number of African countries. In a series running from 2021 onNTS Radio, researcher andbroadcasterJamal Khadar'sReimagining Country documents less well-known connections between modern country music and both African and Caribbean song writing, instruments and general influence across genres.[166] Khadar also argues that modern country music has benefited from traditional or classicalAfrican music genres.[167]
Specific country examples include western African, whereNigerian country music has continued to grow within the large music industry there.[168] In eastern Africa, the roots of country can be traced back even earlier.Eswatini has a number of popular singers who blend country music with local and traditional styles of guitar, beginning in the 1970s.[169] In the 1950s in Zambia, the opening of a number of copper mines in northern Zambia'sCopperbelt region brought similar stories of industrialization and movement to the people in this area.[170] Guitar was integrated into local music, as a result of Zambians returning from WWII and a cross-cultural interactions with international mining staff, developing a unique country folk music from the region.[171]
InJapan, country and western music first developed a following before World War II, but many Japanese became exposed to it after the war due to theFar East Network.[172][173] One of the first Japanese western acts wasBiji Kuroda & The Chuck Wagon Boys, other artists include Jimmie Tokita and His Mountain Playboys, The Blue Rangers, Wagon Aces, andTomi Fujiyama.[172] While the majority of these musicians sung in English, a few of them sang in the Japanese language.[172] The genre continues to have a dedicated following in Japan, thanks to Charlie Nagatani, Katsuoshi Suga, J.T. Kanehira, Dicky Kitano, and Manami Sekiya.[172] Country and western venues in Japan include the former annualCountry Gold concert, organized by Charlie Nagatani, and the modern honky tonks atLittle Texas in Tokyo and Armadillo inNagoya.[174][175][176]
InMongolia, there is a developing country music scene. Enkh-Erdene performed a cover of George Strait's "Amarillo by Morning" onThe World's Best in 2019, he released country music albumArvan Tavnii Saran in theMongolian language with original songs in 2023, and covered Garth Brooks' "Friends In Low Places" in 2024 onAmerica's Got Talent: Fantasy League.[177][178] The Baatar is another singer and musician of "Mongolian country" by blending country music with traditionalMongolian folk elements, includingurtyn duu singing techniques and instruments like themorin khuur andtsuur, they released their first album in 2022.[179]
InIndia, there is an annual concert festival called "Blazing Guitars"[180] held inChennai brings together Anglo-Indian musicians from all over the country (including some who have emigrated to places like Australia). The year 2003 brought home-grown Indian,Bobby Cash to the forefront of the country music culture in India when he became India's first international country music artist to chart singles in Australia.
The Philippines, a US Commonwealth from 1900 to 1946, was introduced to country music during this time.[citation needed] Today, in the Philippines, country music has become a part of the expression of theCordilleran way of life. Country music from this area often compares theIgorot lifestyle to that ofAmerican cowboys.
Baguio City has an FM station that caters to country music,DZWR 99.9 Country, which is part of theCatholic Media Network. Bombo Radyo Baguio has a segment on its Sunday slot for Igorot, Ilocano and country music. And as of recently,DWUB occasionally plays country music. Many country music musicians tour thePhilippines.Original Pinoy Music has influences from country.
Australian country music influenced by US country music has developed a distinct style, where guitar,banjo,fiddle and harmonica are used. Shaped by British and Irish folk ballads and Australianbush balladeers likeHenry Lawson andBanjo Paterson. Theaboriginal population in Australia were both artists and audience members.[181]Auriel Andrew was the first aboriginal woman to sing country music in Australia, and was an important part of the genre's rising popularity.[182]
Folk songs sung in Australia between the 1780s and 1920s, based around such themes as the struggle against governmenttyranny, or the lives ofbushrangers,swagmen,drovers,stockmen andshearers, continue to influence the genre. This strain of Australian country, with lyrics focusing on Australian subjects, is generally known as "bush music" or "bush band music". "Waltzing Matilda", is often regarded as Australia's unofficialnational anthem.[183] Later themes which endure to the present include the experiences of war, of droughts and flooding rains, ofAboriginality and of the railways and trucking routes which link Australia's vast distances.[184][185]
Country music has been a particularly popular form of musical expression amongIndigenous Australians.Troy Cassar-Daley is among Australia's successful contemporary indigenous performers, andKev Carmody andArchie Roach employ a combination of folk-rock and country music to sing about Aboriginal rights issues.[189]
Mainstream country music is popular in theprairie provinces, theBritish Columbia Interior, Northern Ontario, and inAtlantic Canada.[190] The origins of Canadian country music are believed to beCeltic traditional music, developed in Atlantic Canada in the form of Scottish, Acadian and Irish folk music popular among immigrants to Canada's Atlantic Provinces.[190] This music is sometimes described as"sea shanty." While country music is popular in the Prairies, the area never developed a distinct country musical style, and instead has borrowed from US country. Given the mix of European settlers, polkas and western music were popularized.
InIreland, Country and Irish is a music genre that combines traditionalIrish folk music with US country music. Television channelTG4 began a quest for Ireland's next country star calledGlór Tíre, translated as "Country Voice".James Kilbane, a country and gospel singer, has produced popularChristian and traditional country influenced albums. Other Irish singers who have produced country music includeDaniel O'Donnell,Crystal Swing, andCMAT.[195]
Country music artists from the U.S. have seen crossover with Latin American audiences, particularly inMexico. Country music artists from throughout the U.S. have recorded renditions of Mexican folk songs, including "El Rey" which was performed onGeorge Strait'sTwang album and duringAl Hurricane'stribute concert. AmericanLatin pop crossover musicians, likeLorenzo Antonio's "Ranchera Jam" have also combined Mexican songs with country songs in aNew Mexico music style.[citation needed]
Regional Mexican is a radio format featuring many ofMexico's versions of country music. It includes a number of different styles, usually named after their region of origin. One specific song style, theCanción Ranchera, or simply Ranchera, literally meaning "ranch song", found its origins in the Mexican countryside and was first popularized withMariachi. It has since also become popular withGrupero,Banda,Norteño,Tierra Caliente,Duranguense and other regional Mexican styles. TheCorrido, a different song style with a similar history, is also performed in many other regional styles, and is most related to thewestern style of the United States and Canada. Other song styles performed in regional Mexican music includeBallads,Cumbias,Boleros, among others.Country en Español is also popular in Mexico. A Country en Español popularity boom also reached the central regions of Mexico during the 1990s. For most of its history, Country en Español mainly resembledNeotraditional country. However, in more modern times, some artists have incorporated influences from other subgenres.
According toMelody Music Magazine, the pioneers of country music inIran is the English-speaking country music bandDream Rovers, whose founder, singer and songwriter is Erfan Rezayatbakhsh (elf).[200] The band was formed in 2007 inTehran,[201] and have released two studio albums.[202] MusicianToby Keith performed alongside Saudi Arabian folk musicianRabeh Sager in 2017.[203][204] This concert was similar to the performances ofJazz ambassadors that performed distinctively American style music internationally.[205]
The Nashville Network (TNN) was launched in 1983 as a channel devoted to country music, and later added sports and outdoor lifestyle programming. It actually launched just two days after CMT. In 2000, after TNN and CMT fell under the same corporate ownership, TNN was rebranded as a non-country television channel, eventually becomingParamount Network in 2018. TNN was later revived from 2012 to 2013 afterJim Owens Entertainment, acquired the trademark and licensed it toLuken Communications; that channel renamed itself Heartland after Luken was embroiled in an unrelated dispute that left the company bankrupt.
Great American Country (GAC) was launched in 1995, also as a country music-oriented channel that would later add lifestyle programming pertaining to the American Heartland and South. In 2021, GAC Media relaunched Great American Country as GAC Family, a family-oriented general entertainment network, while Ride TV was relaunched as GAC Living, a network devoted to programming pertaining to lifestyles of the American South. The GAC acronym which once stood for "Great American Country" now stands for "Great American Channels".
In Canada,CMT broadcasts country music. In the past, the current-dayCottage Life network saw some country focus as Country Canada and later, CBC Country Canada before that network drifted into an alternate network for overflow CBC content as Bold. In earlier decades,CBC Television had country music programming including the showDon Messer's Jubilee.Gordie Tapp'sCountry Hoedown and its successor,The Tommy Hunter Show, ran for a combined 36 years on the CBC, from 1956 to 1992; in its last nine years on air, the U.S. cable network TNN carried Hunter's show.
In Australia, theCountry Music Channel played country music, but ceased operations in June 2020 and was replaced byCMT (owned byNetwork 10 parent companyParamount Networks UK & Australia).[210]Country HQ showcases new talent on the rise in the country music scenedown under. Today, CMC (theCountry Music Channel), a 24‑hour music channel dedicated to non-stop country music, can be viewed onpay TV and features once a year the Golden Guitar Awards, CMAs and CCMAs alongside international shows such asThe Wilkinsons,The Road Hammers, andCountry Music Across America.
In Britain, there is a music video channel is dedicated to country music,Music & Memories, owned by Canis Media.[211]
In the United States, there are a significant number of local and regional radio broadcasts for country music. There are also satellite radio stations, including The Highway on Sirius XM.[212] In Canada,Stingray Music continues maintains several country music audio-only channels. In the UK,BBC Radio does not offer a full-time country station (BBC Radio 2 Country, a "pop-up" station, operated four days each year between 2015 and 2017).[213]
In the US, one of the largest country music festivals isStagecoach, held in Palms Spring, California after the annual Coachella festival.[214] In the United States, there are a number of regional country music festivals, some hosted by local radio stations, and others by promoters. Country music artists regularly tour throughout the United States.
Country music, during the 1960s and 1970s, served as a foil to thecounterculture folk and rock music of the time, supporting traditional and oftenconservative beliefs.[217] From its inception, virtually all country music, known ashillbilly music, lacked specific political alignment, and was instead focused on everyday problems and angst of the working class.[218]Merle Haggard's 1969 albumOkie from Muskogee brought a staunchly political, conservative take on country music, which proved popular. Republican presidentRichard Nixon further cemented this conservative musical association during his years in office, by frequently hosting country musicians, declaring October 1970 to be country music month, and by politically pandering to audiences where country music was popular.[219]
Thematically, modern country music has continue to promote cultural and political ideologies such aspatriotism, with a focus on the military and conservative values.[220][221] More recently, particularly after theSeptember 11 attacks and theGreat Recession, the ideals ofnationalism and economic revitalization of the middle class were popularized in the mainstream, and subsequently in country music. Lee Greenwood'sGod Bless the USA[222] was revived in popularity following the attacks of September 11, reaching the top of Billboard Hot 100.[223] Many country artists, such as Alan Jackson with his ballad on terrorist attacks,Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning), wrote songs that celebrated the military, highlighted the gospel, and emphasized home and family values over wealth. Toby Keith'sCourtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American) threatened to put "a boot in" the posterior of the enemy, while Charlie Daniels'sThis Ain't No Rag, It's a Flag promised to "hunt" the perpetrators "down like a mad dog hound."Darryl Worley recordedHave You Forgotten is another example of a modern, patriotic country song. Country music surged back into popular culture as a result of songs such as these which focused on national identity and patriotism.[224]
In contrast, afterThe Chicks released their third albumHome, in 2003, theyfell into controversy because the lead singer commented she wished she was not from the same state, Texas, as then-PresidentGeorge W. Bush. This comment, at the on-set of theIraq War, was seen as contradictory to the strong patriotism demonstrated among other country artists.[citation needed] The comments caused a rift between the band and the country music scene. The band's fourth album, 2006'sTaking the Long Way, was commercially successful among non-country audiences but largely ignored among country audiences.
With the revival of country music's popularity in the US during the 2020s, some country music has become affiliated with current conservative ideological beliefs.[225] Notably,Jason Aldean's 2023 single "Try That in a Small Town" was released with a music video depicted images of violence in American cities, such asvandalism in urban settings and encounters between police and protestors.[226] Aldean dismissed the claims that it had a political message, and stated the song is about the "unspoken rule...that [w]e all have each other's backs and we look out for each other."[227] In response, Tennessee state representativeJustin Jones referred to the song as a "heinous vile racist song" which attempts to normalize "racist, violence, vigilantism and white nationalism."[228] Others also understood the lyrics to be supportive oflynchings andsundown towns.[229][230] The song did receive support among prominent Republican politicians, such asNikki Haley, after its release, and ensuing criticism.[231][232]
Mickey Guyton has been praised for breaking barriers as a Black woman.
The history of country music is complex, and the genre draws from influences from bothAfrican and European musical traditions.[233] Despite this multicultural origin, country music is today largely associated withwhite Americans. This has been attributed to the efforts tosegregate the music industry byrecord labels, beginning in the 1920s.[234] However, because country music is a wide genre, sub-genres includingIndian andHispanic country, have existed since the early 1970s.[235][236][237] Furthermore, one of the first artists to perform at theGrand Ole Opry, a famous country music show, wasDeFord Bailey, who was African-American.[218] African-American rapper Lil Nas X, whose breakout songOld Town Road, a mixture of country and rap, has achieved widespread success. His aforementioned song topped theBillboard Hot Country Songs list, before controversially being removed, sparking a debate around whether the removal was racially motivated.Billboard denied these allegations, stating that the decision was purely based on musical composition.[238] Out of more than 2,100 country music artists and groups played on national country music radio stations from 2000 to 2020, it is reported that 3% of those artists were black, Hispanic or indigenous.[239]
Black country-music artistMickey Guyton had been included among the 2021 nominees for the Grammy's Best Solo Country Performance award.[240] Guyton has expressed bewilderment that, despite substantial coverage by online platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, her music, like that ofValerie June,[citation needed] another black musician who embraces aspects of country in her Appalachian- and Gospel-tinged work and who has been embraced by international music audiences, is still effectively ignored by American broadcast country-music radio.[241] Guyton's 2021 albumRemember Her Name in part references the case of black health-care professionalBreonna Taylor,[242] who was killed in her home by police.[243]
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^De Marco, P. (2025).Country Music: The American Sound. Pasquale De Marco. p. 6.
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Bill Legere ([1977]).E[lectrical] T[anscription]s: Transcription Library of Bill Legere. Mississauga, Ont.: B. Legere. 3 vols., each of which is thrice perforated and looseleaf. N.B.: Vol. 1–2, Country Artists—vol. 2, Pop Artists. Without ISBN
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